


Purgatory Pride

by brunetteandblond



Series: Moving On [19]
Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, End of the series, Everyone Is Gay, F/F, F/M, Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fluff, Happy Ending, M/M, Pride
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-10-01 11:15:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17243246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brunetteandblond/pseuds/brunetteandblond
Summary: It's been twelve years since Waverly and Doc went missing in the Garden. But after about five years, they came back (with Dolls, of course).Now, all the adults are well into their thirties nearing their forties. They're getting old, but some things never change.And finally, they've made it to Purgatory Pride. It's only taken twelve years. But it was worth the wait.This is the end of the Moving On series but can be read alone.





	Purgatory Pride

**Author's Note:**

  * For [fauchevalent](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fauchevalent/gifts), [kiarcheo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiarcheo/gifts), [Nyxxyn22](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nyxxyn22/gifts), [Haught_stuff](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haught_stuff/gifts), [JustAReaderForNow](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAReaderForNow/gifts), [LFL21_PotterAndEarpFan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LFL21_PotterAndEarpFan/gifts), [CapturetheFinnick](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CapturetheFinnick/gifts).



> Hey, everyone!
> 
> This has been a massive journey that I have loved being on! 
> 
> So many of you have been dedicated reading all of these and I want to thank you! It's been a pleasure writing for you!
> 
> The parts in this story that are italicized are from my previous parts of this series, so some of you may recognize a lot of it. Now, if this is your first time reading one of my stories and you enjoyed reading it, go read my other stories! They're pretty rad! 
> 
> Once again, thank you all so much!

Alice was enchanted by the group of townspeople surrounding her. She had heard that the event had gotten bigger over the years, but she was surprised that this many people had shown up, especially in the majorly homophobic town. But then again, people were being quieter about their blatant hatred.

It was the family’s first pride. Waverly had painted the pride flag on both of Alice’s and Eliza’s cheeks. The older Earp daughter was beaming the whole walk to where the event was starting. This had been something she was looking forward to forever. Eliza followed her sister and felt comforted by the warmth the crowd brought.

Both Waverly and Wynonna were wearing bi t-shirts, bracelets, and had paint covering their cheeks. It took a while to convince Doc to join them (after they got him to admit that maybe he and Wyatt Earp were a little bit more than friends), but he finally allowed them to dress him up for the occasion when Dolls showed him that he was in a onesie.

Henry proudly wore his shirt that read “I love my dads.” Jeremy and Robin stood behind their kids (covered head to toe with pride colors), each one of them carrying a new sibling. Nico, the toddler, wore a shirt that had a heart with the pride flag inside. Malak, whose mother was killed because of being transgender, carried the trans pride flag in her hand with a grin on her face. She was a little too young to understand, but from what her daddies told her, she understood that her mother would have been proud of her.

Nicole wore her lesbian pride colors like they were a badge of honor. She stood tall, like she did at the first pride she went to when she was in college. When she first felt free. She cried when she dressed her sons, Jay and Theo, in outfits that her parents would have never approved of.

Xavier put his daughter on his shoulders as they gathered into the large group of people. Eliza could see everything up there. Even at two years old, it was a sight she thought she would never forget. Especially not the faces her family made. They were irrefutably joyous.

Waverly and her wife clasped hands as they began the parade through the main street. Theo and Jay were holding hands with their moms on either side, gawking in awe at the sight in front of them.

Dolls, Alice, and Doc were all so excited that they became squirrely, unable to contain their excitement. They talked the whole time. About everything and nothing. Not that it mattered very much.

Nicole and Wynonna kept their attention solely on Waverly, remembering the conversation they had with each other a decade ago when the younger Earp was still in the garden.

_“Haught, you don’t have to pretend like you don’t care. This is me coming out to you.”_

_Nicole squealed and wrapped her arms around the brunette (who shook her head and rolled her eyes). “I knew it! I just totally got that vibe from you, ya know? I kept telling Waverly but--” She stopped talking and frowned. Waverly._

_“I should have told her,” Wynonna said solemnly. “It’s not like I was keeping it a secret. I’ve slept with both men and women my whole life. I just--”_

_Nicole put her hand on the brunette’s shoulder and whispered, “You like to keep things private, Earp. That’s okay. She’d understand. And I’m sure when you do get to tell her, she’ll scream and cheer and immediately invite you to the next Purgatory Pride.”_

_Wynonna grinned, imagining the moment. “She’d definitely do that. Maybe we could make it a family thing? I’m sure Alice would love it.”_

They never admitted it to each other, but neither of them was sure that they would ever get to this moment. They weren’t sure that Waverly was going to come home. But goddammit, they were so incredibly happy that she did.

Nicole and Wynonna (the platonic soulmates) shared a loving look, knowing that what once seemed like a dream was now becoming a reality in front of their own eyes.

It was one of her other best friends that snapped the brunette out of the moment.

“Wynonna, did you hear this?” Doc asked her, looking startled and slightly impressed. “Alice said that she knows all the lyrics to every Queen song.”

Alice rolled her eyes at her father. “Mama used to sing to me every night. And most of the time it was rock music. I also know the words to almost every Foo Fighters and Snow Patrol song.”

Before the brunette had a chance to defend herself, everyone else crowded back up around them and Xavier asked, “You sang rock music to Alice, too? Eliza’s a big fan of Pink Floyd.”

“She did,” Nicole answered for Wynonna. “It was the sweetest thing I ever saw. Though, she didn't exactly want me to know she was doing it. I caught her.”

_It wasn’t a lullaby. No, it was rock. Foo Fighter’s “Everlong” in fact. Nicole quietly snorted and listened to the words and the voice that came from inside the room._

_“And I wonder_

_When I sing along with you_

_If everything could ever feel this real forever_

_If anything could ever be this good again”_

_The 90’s angst song was currently one of Wynonna’s favorites, and Nicole could see why. They say that people’s favorite songs have the lyrics and words that they are too afraid to say. Haught wondered if this was true for the mother as well._

_Once Alice stopped crying, Nicole pushed the door open. Wynonna looked up and quickly wiped her tears (as if Nicole hadn’t already seen them). She put Alice back into her crib and turned to Nicole, ready for the inevitable questioning._

_“Foo Fighters, Earp? What, no Nirvana? Where’s the love?”_

_Wynonna snickered, appreciating the joke when everything was so tense and uncomfortable. “I was considering Green Day, but I didn’t want to accidentally force Alice into early puberty teen brood.”_

Wynonna groaned and facepalmed, remembering exactly what her best friend was referring to. “It wasn’t like I was hiding it! Besides, we weren’t the closest then! We just started raising Alice. My singing was very personal.”

“I thought that you asked Nicole to marry you then,” Waverly commented slyly.

Wynonna flushed, gasped, and hit the redhead’s shoulder. “You told her that?! What the hell?”

“Ow!” Nicole muttered and then explained, “You know I can’t keep anything from her! And I told her the truth, ‘Nonna. It wasn’t romantic or anything.”

“Woah woah woah,” Jeremy interrupted, looking baffled and amused. “You proposed and didn’t tell me or Robin?”

“Or me?” Alice piped up, pretending to be offended (she was just as amused as everyone else was). “I was the one who wanted you two to get married! But you both were the ones that told me that you didn’t want to get married because you didn’t like each other romantically. I was so embarrassed!”

“It wasn’t my best moment!” Wynonna cried out anxiously as she thought about that night.

_Wynonna let out a shaky laugh. “I know how stupid it sounds for me to want to get married just because of that. But I won’t let it happen to her, Haught. I’d prefer we’d get married rather than the chance of Alice having to spend a night in one of those foster home shitholes. It changes you, Haught. It changed me.”_

_Nicole scooted her chair closer to her best friend. She cupped her friend’s red cheeks and pushed her hair behind her ear._

_“Not stupid, Earp. I understand why you’d want to do anything to prevent that from happening to our daughter. I can’t even fathom what you went through. But getting married, Wynonna. That’s a giant step. A step I’m not sure I want to take. Not because of you, but because of… of Waverly.”_

_The brunette cursed herself. “Fuck, Nicole. I didn’t even-- Of course. When you want to get married, you want to marry a different Earp. I should’ve-- I’m being so selfish.”_

_Nicole laughed and shook her head. “No, Wynonna. You’re being the opposite. You’d actually marry me to ensure your child’s happiness. That’s selfless.”_

_Wynonna snickered and replied, “You’re acting like I find you incredibly irritating or something. For your information, I think we’d be a great married couple.”_

_The other woman snorted and murmured, “Maybe in another lifetime.”_

“She actually did it the night you asked us why we weren’t married,” Nicole told her daughter with a shrug. “It was very sweet. But unfortunately I had to turn her down.”

Wynonna harrumphed and shouted, “I wasn’t into you, Haught! Ugh, can we drop this? Sometimes I was very irrational. My bad.”

“Not irrational,” Nicole told her simply. She turned to the rest of the group and decided to explain herself. “She was thoughtful. She’d do literally anything for Alice. Even marry me. I was always stunned by how often she put everyone else first. Like that one time, this hot woman was really into Wynonna and she ended up turning her down.”

“Oh yeah!” Jeremy added, grinning from ear to ear. “I remember that! She was really pretty and really into her!”

“I haven’t heard this story,” Dolls muttered, smiling at his wife. “Do tell, babe.”

“Oh my god, it was nothing!” Wynonna promised after glaring at her two best friends. “They are just being dramatic. Nothing ever happened.”

Dolls gasped playfully. “Nothing? You didn’t even get a kiss? Earp, that is just so unlike you.”

Wynonna flicked her husband’s head and thought back to the moment in question.

_The woman gave her this slightly disbelieving look but decided to give her the benefit of the doubt. “So, you aren’t in a relationship?”_

_Wynonna shook her head, causing Yara to grin with delight. The woman leaned in and pressed her lips against the brunette’s._

_Wynonna wanted to enjoy the moment. Maybe she even wanted to try dating this mystery woman (who truly seemed to want Wynonna). But she felt nothing when they kissed._

_Maybe it was because too much was on her mind. She thought of Alice and her responsibilities of being a mother. Her life was complicated enough without dating. And deep down, she knew she would never be able to let Yara (or anyone else for that matter) in. Nicole had broken so many of her walls because of Alice and their mutual love and grief for Waverly._

_And the last person she loved, well, that didn’t turn out great. Even though she might have not blamed herself for Xavier Dolls’ death like she used to, her heart still clenched in pain at the thought of him._

_She pushed against Yara’s chest slightly, stopping the kiss._

_Trying to dissolve some of Yara’s confusion (as it became obvious that she was wanting more than a kiss), Wynonna explained, “I’m not in a relationship, but I’m not looking for one. I hope I didn’t mislead you too much. I thought I could do this. Or at least try it. But I have a difficult past. I’m incredibly messed up.”_

Pushing herself out of the tense memory, she muttered under her breath, “I got a kiss alright.”

“To be fair, a kiss from you doesn’t mean much,” Nicole pointed out, not thinking through what she had announced to the group. She didn’t understand why her best friend started to glare at her.

Waverly almost flinched at the comment. “What does that mean, babe?”

Nicole’s face fell, realizing that she said too much. She turned to look at Wynonna for help, but the brunette had quickly looked at the ground, hiding her embarrassment. She tried to think of an excuse, anything, rather than admit about that time she and the older Earp sibling locked lips.

But it was Alice who began remembering that night. “Oh yeah! Mama, you kissed her the night dad’s parents came over, right?”

Both Nicole and Wynonna groaned in unison. It wasn’t like they didn’t have their reasons for doing what they did. They both knew that it meant nothing. But they just hated how they had to explain it, especially after knowing that Waverly thought that they, too, were a couple when she first got home.

“Kissed? My sister and my wife? I feel like I’m going to faint,” Waverly said dramatically, still slightly jealous of the relationship that they have.

“You shouldn’t be that surprised, baby girl,” Wynonna joked awkwardly. “I did have s-- relations with your father.” She quickly looked around at the kids who now joined up and talked with each other, not paying any attention to the parents other than Alice and Henry, who shared a look of amusement and disgust at her statement.

Waverly narrowed her eyes at her sister. “That’s not an excuse, ‘Nonna.”

“It’s not what you think!” Nicole argued, pulling her wife’s arm slightly. “She wasn’t doing it to be romantic or anything. In fact, she did it to calm me down.”

“How would a kiss calm you down?” Xavier asked his close friend, still grinning about the whole conversation they were having. He wasn’t worried at all. He knew that they were nothing more than best friends. He enjoyed everyone’s reactions (and he loved hearing about any story in which his wife was involved).

“Well… you see…” Nicole said and then started to explain the situation with her parents and how she and the brunette had to pretend like they were a married couple.

_Nicole turned to her mother with fire in her eyes. “You can’t control me anymore! Like it or not, I’m happy here! I made a great decision. I know you just want me to admit that I should have stayed with you. But I will never do that. I’m lucky to have met Wynonna. And Alice brings me more joy than almost anything.”_

_Sabina snorted and crossed her arms. She didn’t even flinch. “Nicole, don’t be hysterical. Look at your wife. She’s too meek to even say something—“_

_“Sabina—“ Richard tried to interrupt but failed miserably._

_Nicole's mother continued, “And look at you both! Neither of you wears wedding bands, you don’t touch like a couple, you don’t even smile at each other, and your own child calls you mama and daddy as if she doesn't understand that you both are female. Daddy for goodness sakes. Now, maybe all lesbian relationships are like that. I have no idea.”_

_Nicole almost growled. She got up from the table and looked as if she was about to pounce. Wynonna quickly got up as well. She didn’t want Nicole to say something that the redhead would regret, so she grabbed a hold of Nicole’s hand, pulled her close, and kissed her._

_The kiss didn’t last long (and it lacked any romantic spark which they were both thankful for), but it calmed Nicole down. It was Wynonna’s quick way to stop Nicole from doing something drastic and to tell her that she was there for her. It might have been a little over the top, but it worked._

Waverly wrinkled her nose. She now understood why her sister did what she did, but she was now furious at her wife’s parents (who she never met or heard about). She hated, most of all, that she wasn’t the one that was there to comfort her.

“I wish I was there so that I could beat them up,” Waverly whispered to herself darkly.

Nicole wrapped her arm around her wife and kissed her cheek. “I know you do. I’m sure if you were there you would have made sure they didn’t leave the house without any scars. My tough and scary baby.”

Waverly couldn’t help but smile at that. “That I am. And that was the last time you two kissed, right? I’m not going to find out something else in the next few years, right?”

“Correctamundo, hermano,” Wynonna told her with a sly grin.

“ _Hermana_ , Wyn,” Waverly corrected with a stiff smile as her sister rolled her eyes. “I am a female, after all. So, I am guessing that she helped you with precarious situations, too, right?”

“Nah, all your wife ever did was be a pain in my ass-- butt! I mean butt!” She sighed, watching Henry and Alice burst into laughter. She still had trouble not cursing. That would never change.

“Not true!” Nicole retorted with a gasp. “I cleaned up all your messes, Earp.”

Wynonna rolled her eyes and muttered, “Even messes I didn’t want you to clean up.”

It took a while for the redhead to understand what her best friend meant by that. But then it hit her and she was slightly taken aback. “That was one time, Wyn. One time! And I didn’t mean to! I thought you were just being lazy when you said that you didn’t want to clean the attic.”

“Oh boy, you tried to clean the attic?” The younger Earp sibling asked her wife. “I’m so sorry. Did it swallow you up? I remember I once went in there and I came out with cobwebs covering my whole body.”

Nicole bit her lip, remembering exactly what happened. She remembered finding the box filled with Wynonna’s things from her childhood. And all of her journals filled with depressing details from her past that the brunette felt she needed to explain. She remembered the horror her best friend had to relive and the moments they shared discussing her ghosts.

_“I’m so sorry that you ever had to go through that.”_

_“You couldn’t do anything about it,” Wynonna said and turned her head so that she could see the redhead crying. “Nicole, listen to me when I say that you couldn’t have done anything about it. We didn’t know each other. And we can’t go back in time.”_

_“Doesn’t make me not want to,” Nicole retorted toughly. “I’d do anything to change what happened to you. Anything, Wynonna. You know how much I lo--” She stopped. They never told each other something like that in recent years._

_Wynonna’s blue eyes stared into Nicole’s brown ones. The moment was incredibly intense. They had certainly gotten close over the four years of co-parenting. They shared a bed, worked together, laughed together, learned each other’s facial expressions by heart, seen each other naked multiple times on accident, and raised a daughter. Their bond was strong and their protectiveness of each other was fierce. Love was the only word that could describe that. But after everything, it was still hard to say it out loud._

_Nicole, of course, had said it to her when Waverly was around. Whether it was jokingly, to annoy her, or that one time she told her she ‘kinda loved her too,’ it was never this serious._

_“I love you,” Wynonna whispered and kissed her best friend’s forehead. After seeing Nicole’s surprised confusion, the brunette added, “I know I should say it more. I’m so appreciative of everything you have done for me. You’ve saved me, Haught. Not just as Alice’s parent but as my friend. Best friend. I love you.”_

_A smile grew from the redhead’s lips. “I love you, too, Wynonna Earp. And I think you’re the one that saved me.”_

_Wynonna let out a soft chuckle and replied, “Maybe we saved each other.”_

_“Yeah,” Nicole agreed with a slight nod of her head. “Maybe we did.”_

“I appreciated the effort,” Wynonna promised her friend with a smile. She could tell that Nicole was afraid that the moment hurt the brunette, but it didn’t. So much had changed. The previous Heir wasn’t as emotionally stunted as she was then. “But she can’t even deny now that cleaning that room is impossible. And that’s how it should be.”

“I’m surprised she didn’t try harder,” Waverly commented not noticing that her wife and sister were sharing a moment that no one else could understand. “My girl’s a stubborn one.”

“I’m stubborn?!” Nicole yelled and then pointed to her best friend. “That girl was the one who pretended to not like Calamity Jane for years just so that she didn’t have to admit she actually liked her.”

The group of friends laughed at the brunette who scrunched up her face and put her hands on her hips. “You’re never going to let that go, are you?”

Nicole thought back to the night she caught her best friend loving her cat and smiled.

_Nicole didn’t close her door that night. In fact, she sat by Wynonna’s door and watched as the orange cat crept into the brunette’s room._

_“Hey cat,” She heard Wynonna whisper. “Can you believe that Haught was going to try to take you away from me? Your owner's mean.”_

_The redhead couldn’t stand it anymore. She got up and walked into the ex-Heir’s room. She saw Wynonna’s jaw drop and Nicole smiled. She loved catching the woman off guard._

_“Oh, just go away, Haught,” Wynonna muttered and buried her head into her pillow. “You win, alright!”_

_“I always do,” Nicole said and smirked. “I’ll see you and your cat tomorrow morning, Earp. Goodnight!”_

“Nope,” The redhead told her best friend and then stuck out her tongue. “Just like I’ll never forget the day our daughter said the ‘f’ word.”

Henry laughed the hardest out of the group, causing Alice to smack her best friend on his arm. “Ouch, Ali! I’m sorry that it’s so funny!”

“You did have a potty mouth as a kid, kid,” Wynonna agreed with a nod of her head. “I thought it was hilarious, but your dad disagreed. She kept telling me it was my fault, too!”

“The audacity!” Nicole shouted sarcastically, waving her hands up in the air.

“You do curse a lot, Aunt Wynonna,” Henry pointed out with a smirk across his face. He gulped once his aunt narrowed her eyes at him. “Not that I don’t enjoy them. You give very well placed f-bombs.”

“Thank you, Henry! You’re my favorite kid!” Wynonna told him with a wink. “See, he enjoys it! And so do you, Haught. If you remember, you thought it was funny, too!”

_They found their daughter in the kitchen, with a glass of water spilled on the floor, a box of goldfish scattered on the counter, and Calamity Jane licking something from Alice’s hand._

_“Alice, what--”_

_“Shit balls,” The young girl muttered loud enough for the two women to hear._

_Nicole and Wynonna looked at each other and after a few seconds, both burst out into laughter. Okay, maybe it was a little funny._

“Fine!” Nicole confessed. “I might have laughed a few times. But that’s because Alice was so cute! Not because of the cursing! She could get away with almost anything as a little munchkin. Earp and I were very new at the whole parenting thing, you know. We didn't make the greatest decisions.”

Alice snorted and replied, “Dad, what are you talking about? You two were great. _Are_ great. I mean, other than growing up with two cops as parents…”

“Yeah, but that’s technically the most normal thing about your childhood,” Henry pointed out, a smirk once again on his face.

Alice shoved him off the sidewalk but wasn’t offended. She was never really embarrassed about her large and very complicated family. She knew it wasn’t normal to have three father figures, but she just didn’t give a crap (which she had learned from her mother).

She thought about her birth father, Doc Holliday. The man she could always count on to make her smile. The man she could always count on to have fun with. He loved her and her mom. Unconditionally so. He was the man who called her, ‘little girl’ (and was the only person who was ever allowed to call her that without receiving a punch in the stomach).

She thought about her mother’s husband, Xavier Dolls. ‘Agent Dad.’ She thought about how protective he was of the both of them. She thought about how he wanted her mom _and_ Alice. That he chose the both of them and their craziness even though he didn’t have to. She thought about how happy he made her mother (and her). And most of all, she thought about the day her third father asked her if he could marry her mother.

_“I wanted to ask you if you were okay with me asking your mom to marry me. I know that it would be a change so I wanted to know if you were okay with it first.”_

_She stared at him in silence. After a few seconds, the corner of her lips turned up and a grin spread across her face._

_“You’re serious?” Alice asked him._

_Xavier chuckled nervously and replied, “Of course, Alice. I love your mom and you more than anything. And if you’re okay with it, I’d really like to marry her.”_

_“You’re in love with her?” Alice asked, thinking back to the conversation she had with her mom and ‘dad’ when she was five._

_“I am,” Dolls answered simply as he pulled into the carpool lane. “I care about your opinion, little Earp. And me marrying your mom is sort of me marrying into your family. So I need to make sure that you are alright with everything.”_

_“Of course I am,” Alice told him. “I want you to marry my mom, Agent Dad.”_

_He snorted and gave her an awkward hug from inside the car. They both jumped when they heard the car behind them honk. They both shared a quick burst of laughter._

_“I think they want you to go, Alice. Have a good day at school.” He unlocked the door._

_She kissed his cheek and gave him a short smile. When she opened the door, she shouted, “See ya later, Agent Dad! Love you!”_

_“I love you, too!” He quickly replied before she was out of earshot. He couldn’t help but smile as he drove to Purgatory Sheriff's Department. It was the first time they had exchanged those words. And he couldn’t be happier._

She thought of her dad, her mother’s best friend (and savior), and cousin’s mother, Nicole Haught. She thought about the love that the redhead gave her without hesitation. She thought about the woman that made her feel safe at all times. She thought about the woman who could always comfort her mother. She thought of the woman who raised her and taught her how to be kind, strong, and passionate.

Alice watched her sister bounce as she and the other younger kids skipped hand in hand in the road as they approached the huge banner in the front of the group of marching people. Eliza was laughing and grinning and Alice was so thankful that she was here with her. And while she knew Eliza’s life would be a whole lot less complicated (she only had one mom and one dad), she knew that her sister would understand the beauty of the large, complex, and messy family. Just like Alice did.

“Ow, ‘Nonna!” Waverly winced as her sister poked the bare part of her back that was sunburnt. “You promised you would stop doing it.”

“I know, but it’s so fun!” Wynonna argued with pouting lips.

Nicole rolled her eyes and glared at her best friend. “You’re a bad influence, Earp.”

“Maybe, but at least _I_ didn’t forget to put on sunscreen like somebody else around here. Who could that have been, I wonder?” She tapped her chin, pretending to ponder that question before poking her sister again. “Oh yeah, baby girl. Where did you get that sunburn again?”

Waverly sighed and crossed her arms. “I’m not used to having to put on sunscreen, Wyn. I’m not like you or Nicole who had already been to the beach. It was _my_ first time. And let’s not forget the awkward situation you both put me in when the old gay couple approached us remembering the both of you as a couple!”

Wynonna laughed and replied, “That was hilarious! What a small world, ya know?”

“They moved there, Earp,” Nicole reminded her in deadpan.

The brunette glared at her best friend and said, “Don’t ruin the magic, ginger spice. And how many times do I have to apologize, baby girl? I’m sorry I didn’t correct them the first time I met them. They were just so sweet.”

_After Alice fell asleep in a beach chair, an older woman approached the small group under their canopy._

_“Pardon me, I’m sorry for intruding, but I just want to say that it’s good to see more couples like you two around here. My wife and I were afraid to come out of our house for the first few years we spent here. But I’m glad to see that times are changing. You are a beautiful couple and your daughter is adorable.”_

_Nicole was about to explain to the woman that she and Wynonna weren’t actually a couple when the brunette stood up and shook the woman’s hand and smiled gratefully at her._

_“Thank you so much. That means the world to us. My-- uh-- Nicole, she was the one that convinced me to go on this vacation.”_

_The older woman chuckled and replied, “Then she’s a keeper. Well, I won’t keep you. Goodbye, now.”_

_Nicole and Wynonna waved goodbye as she walked away._

_“What the hell was that?” The redhead asked, slightly amused by the interaction that had just occurred._

_Wynonna shrugged as she sat back down. “She was so excited. And I like compliments. So sue me.”_

Wynonna remembered that vacation with fondness and sadness. She, Nicole, and Alice had a magical few days together that cured a lot of Wynonna’s lingering blues, but it still took place when Waverly was gone. And while the trip made her feel better, she still missed the sibling that she was supposed to take the trip with originally. 

“I suppose it would have been easier to just let it go,” Waverly admitted simply. “It just caught me off guard a little. I thought we were done with having to explain to people that you two aren’t an actual couple. Isn’t it annoying, Dolls?”

He shrugged, not really caring. He knew that they were in different situations. Waverly and Nicole were actually together before they went missing in the garden. She had to come back to a situation where Nicole wasn’t ready to jump into a relationship. She came home only to find her girlfriend and sister so close that they seemed almost romantic. He and Wynonna were never actually together (even though he was in love with her). He’d never forget the intense moment when Waverly asked if they were together.

_Waverly didn’t feel much like eating. She still felt queasy about Nicole and Wynonna (and felt guilty about feeling that way)._

_“Wynonna and Nicole,” the younger Earp sibling whispered to the married couple, though she knew that the other two men were listening and wondering the same thing. “Are they a thing… or… they slept in the same bed.”_

_Jeremy and Robin shared a look of intense discomfort. They didn’t feel like they should be the ones to answer the question. Waverly saw the look and thought the worst. She was for sure at this point that Nicole and Wynonna were together._

_The couple was saved as the two women in question came down the stairs. Everyone stared at them. Waverly could tell they looked worried. Both of them looked like they were deer caught in headlights._

_Before she knew it, the question “Are you guys together?” spilled out of her mouth. She mentally kicked herself and felt guilty that she sounded so accusatory. Trying to fix what she said, she added, “It’s okay if you are. I know a lot of time has passed and you two have gotten very close. And I’m sure you both have been very lonely and--”_

_“Waverly!” Nicole almost yelped so that she could stop Waverly from continuing. “Wynonna and I aren’t together. At all romantically. We are just… she’s my best friend. My rock. We’ve raised Alice together for five years. We shared a bed, but no funny business happens or anything.”_

_Noticing Waverly’s unwavering uncertainty, Wynonna (as she smiled at Nicole, to give and gain some comfort) said, “When Alice started calling her ‘dad,’ it began as a joke. But it really isn’t. I mean, most people in this town think we’re together… but we aren’t. She’s just my--”_

_“Platonic soulmate!” Jeremy interrupted as if trying to save his friend. “They’re so cute!”_

_Wynonna and Nicole shared an eye roll as everyone else laughed, but Waverly could tell that they didn’t disagree. There was a love between them (a love that may have not been there a week ago for the younger Earp)._

Xavier didn’t like the idea of anyone else being with his wife, but if there was anyone that people thought she was with, he was glad it was Haught (his very good friend and colleague) rather than anyone else (like Doc).

Wynonna pulled her husband’s arm and held it close to her. “Dolls doesn’t _get_ jealous, Waves. He’s apparently above all of those silly feelings, right, babe?”

He rolled his eyes and watched as the rest of the adults laughed. “It happened one time, Earp. I’m sorry that I didn’t beat up a guy that was hitting on you.”

“But you didn’t say _anything_. He just went on and on and you said nothing. He didn’t believe me when I said that we were married.”

The five other adults watched the couple with smiles on their faces. They loved watching them bicker.

“But we _are_ married, Earp. We don’t need anyone’s opinion on that. We _are_ married. Remember? We were both there.”

Wynonna glared at him. Of course, she remembered. She’d never forget that day. She had never been wetter (in a totally not sexually way… at least not until later that night).

_It was warmer than the last time Wynonna and Nicole were at the beach since it was July. But the warmth didn’t turn the rain away. When they finally made it to the pier, it started to rain. Everyone’s clothes were getting ruined, but it didn’t matter. They ran to the pier and it started pouring harder._

_“You guys say your vows,” Robin told the couple as they embraced each other. “So we can get out of this rain.”_

_Xavier went first. “For the longest time, I wasn’t even sure I was human. Soldier, agent, dragon, I thought I lived based on a title or job that was forced upon me. But choosing you, Wynonna Earp. Falling in love with you, that has made me feel real. Like a person. You’ve made me a better person and a better man. You’ve shown me that I am more than what the government made me. You showed me that there’s a life worth living._

_“At first, you were a thorn in my side. I was sent to be nothing other than your boss. And I was. For maybe a couple weeks at most. You turned my life upside down. You taught me how to enjoy life. To laugh. To love. You became my partner, my ally, my friend. Our romance took a while. I was afraid of my feelings. I was trained to never feel them. But every time I saw you, I knew you were special. And I knew my life was going to change forever. And I knew I was probably going to lose my job. But that no longer mattered to me. And as scary as that was, I had you by my side. And with you, I felt like everything was going to be okay._

_“And I swear to love you. To hold you when you need it. To surround you, not coddle you, with my love and unconditional adoration. You’re my strength, you’re my power, you’re my hope. And as your husband, I swear to honor you, trust you, support you, and be there for you. Whenever you need me.” He slipped the simple band onto Wynonna’s wet finger._

_She laughed, trying to not get too emotional. “God, before I met you, the only thing I was sure of was that I was a screw-up. I drank, I messed up, I cursed, hell, I was cursed. And I thought that there was no way in hell I’d ever deserve someone as good as you. I thought I’d end up alone or as Waverly and Nicole’s third wheel. But then there was Alice. And my other family. And then there was you. The bane of my existence. At first, I thought you were sent to me as my punishment for being a delinquent for so long._

_“You were everything I stood against. Everything I fought so hard not to be. At least, I thought you were. But that’s when I barely knew you. When all I knew was that you were my authority figure and I wanted to get on your nerves. But goddammit, Xavier Pamela Dolls, you proved me wrong. And I’m so glad you did. Because nothing makes me happier than when I’m with you. As my equal. As my partner. As my friend. As my husband._

_“And I promise to continue being the thorn in your side. I will poke you, I will annoy you, but I will never let you go. And I will never stop loving you. Because you changed my life. You made me feel like I really was a hero. Like I am a hero. And I will always, always , save you.”_

_Wynonna pushed the ring on Xavier’s finger and they kissed. They didn’t even realize that it started to thunder. Their only focus was on each other. Everything else was unimportant._

The memory brought tears to the brunette’s eyes. She always felt lucky as hell when she was around Dolls. He came back home and chose to be with her. She would always be grateful. For him, and for everyone else.

She was grateful for Alice and Eliza, her two baby girls that kept her centered, always. Wynonna Earp never thought she’d be a mother (especially not a good one). But her daughters made her life so special and so incredibly worth it. Every painful thing she went through seemed to not have mattered much after having them. Alice, her partner in crime and body double (they looked so similar), who ended up being the happiest accident in her life. And Eliza, the curious and suspicious baby, who looked like her father almost as much as she acted like him. They were her everything. _Everything._

She was grateful for Waverly, her baby sister. Her light in the dark and the calm before the storm. She knew that without Waverly, she’d either be drunk at 7 AM, dancing on a pole, or dead in a ditch. Waverly believed in her when no one else would (including Wynonna, herself). She was the only one who could see the good left in the ex-Heir and she was the only one who could bring that goodness out of her. Simply put, Waverly was Wynonna’s angel and hero.

She was grateful for Robin, a jazz enthusiast she thought she could never connect to. But somehow, he was able to pull her heartstrings and see through her rough outer shell. She admired his limitless ability to love and help (even though he never had to). He chose Jeremy, but no one forced him to help the gang. But he _did._ He chose Jeremy, but no one forced him to search for Doc and Waverly for a year. But he _did._ He chose Jeremy, but no one forced him to take care of little Alice while her mom was working. But he _did._ He was her brother, and like anyone she loved, she was fiercely protective of him, like a big sister would be.

She was grateful for Doc, a man who understood her, inside and out. She would never truly know if she fell in love with him in the past. But without question, she loves him. Not because he’s the father of her first daughter, but because he stayed. People always seemed to leave Wynonna. She was used to it, honestly. But he didn’t leave her. By her side, he would always stand. Without fail.

She was grateful for Jeremy, a nerdy scientist with a big heart that always had her back. She had to admit, she was a little wary of the boy with puppy dog eyes at first. But then slowly, his kind comments, cheesy jokes, and awkward laugh wormed into her life so deeply that she’d do anything to make sure that he stayed there. Maybe it was because she found out he created a ‘Protect Wynonna Earp At All Costs’ group chat with other members of the team. Or maybe it was because she found out he was almost as big of a Buffy fan as she was. Or maybe it was because he could always bring a smile to her face when she was in a bad mood. Either way, she loved him and all of his adorable quirks.

She was grateful for a moment she, Nicole, Jeremy, and Robin shared in particular. The night of Jerebin’s wedding.

_During the reception, Jeremy and Robin danced and with one look, they came to a sudden conclusion: they couldn’t leave. Not now._

_The married couple pulled their best friends into a four-way-dance, causing all of them to laugh at the awkwardness of everyone’s dancing skills. It was a pure moment. A moment where none of them thought about who they were missing. The husbands knew then, that they were making the right decision._

_“We’re staying,” Jeremy announced as he swirled Nicole around and Robin swayed with Wynonna. “We decided that we’re going to stay. Here.”_

_Both women stopped dancing and turned to each other in surprise._

_“What?” Wynonna breathed out, wanting to make sure that she was hearing him correctly._

_“We’re staying here,” Robin reiterated. “We decided that Purgatory is the place to be for us at the moment. We want to be here.”_

_“And we want to be the best Uncles for the Pod!” Jeremy added, referring to Alice._

_Nicole looked uncertain. “Are you sure? Because you don’t need to stay for us. We’ll be okay. You can go if you need to.”_

_Both men shook their heads and Robin said, “No. We want to stay. If that’s okay with you two, of course.”_

_Wynonna and Nicole shared a short look before wrapping their arms around both men. There was no way they were letting go of the couple if they could prevent it._

_They spent the rest of the night dancing, laughing, and being themselves. It was the best night any of them had for a year. Things were finally getting better._

They stayed. Without fail, they stayed.

She was grateful for Nicole, her annoyingly righteous and upstanding best friend, who happened to be her platonic soulmate and other half. She liked Nicole Haught from the second the redhead told her that her ass was ‘topshelf.’ She really liked her when she found out that the officer fell in love with her sister. Of course, she had to pretend to be all tough and mad at her. She had to make sure that the cop knew that if she hurt her sister, the redhead would have a future full of pain. Okay, maybe she was a little too harsh.

Nicole not only became a rock for the whole team, but she also became Wynonna’s rock. Of course, their friendship would have a long intermission. The first year that Doc and Waverly were gone, they could barely look at each other. They were both feeling so much and were too stubborn to admit to each other that they both needed help. It wasn’t until they had a real conversation when things got better.

_“I wish it could have been me,” Wynonna confessed in a whisper. “I wish it was me in the garden. I wish Waverly was here in your arms and making you happy. I would do anything, anything, for her to be here. So believe me, Haught. I know it’s my fault. I don’t need you to tell me that. But yell at me all you want, if it makes you feel better. But don’t yell at Jeremy and Robin. They have done nothing but try to help. You can’t blame them for wanting to get out of this hell of a town. For wanting to live their lives.”_

_Nicole stared at the brunette and knew that she was being sincere. She couldn’t believe how much sense Wynonna made. She couldn’t believe how right the ex-Heir was._

_The anger vanished from Nicole’s body and shame replaced it. “She would be so ashamed of me if she saw me treat you like this. Look at me, Earp. I’m drinking myself to death, I’m failing at my job, I’m hurting my friends, and I’m blaming you.”_

_“It’s okay,” Wynonna told her as she sat down next to the woman. “It’s okay, Nicole. It’s not like I’ve been any better. I’ve turned everything off. Because I know that if I turned everything on, I’d tear myself apart. I’d drown.”_

_The brunette took the bottle away from Nicole and for the first time, took a sip of alcohol. She even laughed at the absurdity of the moment._

_“Can you imagine what she would say if she were here?” Wynonna asked. “She’d yell at us, flailing her arms around, and tell us that we were being idiots. That we need to help each other. Because we’re stupid. And handling things the wrong way. And she’d push us together, make us bond, and give us a giant hug.”_

_Nicole nodded and let out a harsh chuckle as hot tears slid down her cheeks. “She’d give us both a kiss on the cheek or forehead, make us tea, and make us promise to each other that we would stop fighting like three-year-olds.”_

_“And I’d give you some lame-ass apology, grumble about it, and offer you alcohol as if that would ever make up for what I have said.”_

_A smile almost grew from her lips and she added, “And I’d accept your apology by saying that I was taking the high road and I was a better person. I’d accept the alcohol and we’d probably get drunk and tell each other stories about high school and how jealous we were that Waverly got to be loved and was popular.”_

_“And then we’d go to bed, wake up, and fight about something else in the morning. But it would be a light banter. Because that’s who we are.”_

_Nicole shook her head and took the bottle from Wynonna. “No, Earp. That’s who we were with Waverly. I’m not-- I don’t know how to be that person anymore. I’m just so angry all the time. I don’t know how to be anything else.”_

_The brunette bumped the redhead’s shoulder lightly and told her, “You sound like an angsty teen going through puberty.”_

_Haught laughed shakily and replied, “Thanks, Earp.” Her smile faltered and she then murmured, “I’m sorry. I’ve been… I’ve been awful. To everyone, but to you especially. I know it’s not your fault. I just-- I wanted something to blame.”_

_“Hey, it’s not like I’ve been the easiest person to talk to,” Wynonna reminded her. “I’ve been so cut off, I don’t even remember the last time I remembered feeling anything. I’ve been so dissociated from myself. I’ve even pretended like I’m not even me. Like nothing is even real. You don’t have to apologize to me, Haught stuff.”_

_They were silent for a few minutes. But it wasn’t awkward. Both of them were deep inside their own thoughts._

_“We’re never going to get her back, are we?” Nicole asked her, tears falling down her cheek. She stared at the brunette, who turned to look at her, surprised by the question._

_Wynonna grabbed Nicole’s hand and squeezed it. “We are, Nicole. We are going to get her back. Because you deserve to have a long life with your soulmate. And I deserve to have my sister. And Alice… she deserves to have her Auntie Waverly.”_

_Nicole stared at Wynonna as she came to a harsh realization. “I didn’t think about Alice. I didn’t-- you must want her back.”_

_“I've been waiting,” Wynonna stated simply. "For her father to come home. For Waverly.”_

_The Deputy nodded, understanding what she meant. “I get that, Wynonna. But you need her. And maybe… maybe I do too. Maybe she can help us get back to who we really are. And that doesn’t mean we’ll stop looking for them. We can take turns. One of us will look after Alice and the other will be looking for them. We can do this together, Earp. It’s what they would want us to do.”_

It was the first moment of many where they had come to the rescue of each other. The next five years after that were tough, but they weren’t unbearable. And that was because they had each other. In their darkest moments, they brought each other into the light.

They raised Alice, they shared a bed, they shared a house, they worked together, and they became partners. Best friends. They loved each other as much as either of them could.

Wynonna and Nicole shared a look (like they did almost every day). They were so close, they rarely needed to even speak for them to understand each other. This one look needed no explanation.

It meant: ‘Look at our life that we created. We’ve moved on from those dark times. This is real and it’s ours.’

**Author's Note:**

> I can't believe it's over!
> 
> Once again, if you liked this, please go read my other stories! 
> 
> Please comment and tell me what you think! Let me know what your favorite part of the series was! I'd love to hear from you. 
> 
> Oh, and find me on tumblr @haught-n-cold-gay
> 
> I'd love to talk with you!


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